SUMMARY: What follows is a transcript of the first-ever direct negotiations between Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Hamas Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh. It appears that some gaps remain between the two parties.

TRANSCRIPT:

Benjamin Netanyahu: “We want to live with you in peace, quiet and good neighborly relations. We want our children and your children to 'know war no more.' We do not want parents and wives, sons and daughters, brothers and sisters, to know the sorrow of bereavement. We want our children to dream of a better future for humankind.”[1]

Ismail Haniyeh: “[D]eath for the sake of Allah is our most supreme desire.”[2]

Netanyahu: “Let us join hands and work together in peace, together with our neighbors. There is no limit to the flourishing growth that we can achieve for both peoples - in the economy, in agriculture, in commerce, tourism, education - but, above all, in the ability to give our younger generation hope to live in a place that's good to live in, a life of creative work, a peaceful life with much of interest, with opportunity and hope.”[3]

Haniyeh: “We will never recognize the usurper Zionist government and will continue our jihad-like movement until the liberation of Jerusalem.”[4]

Netanyahu: “The fundamental condition for ending the conflict is the public, binding and sincere Palestinian recognition of Israel as the national homeland of the Jewish People.”[5]

Haniyeh: “[W]e will never recognize, we will never recognize, we will never recognize Israel.”[6]

Netanyahu: “[I]srael will not be the last country to welcome a Palestinian state as a new member of the United Nations. We will be the first.”[7]

Haniyeh: “The occupation has no future on the land of Palestine. When I say ‘the land of Palestine,’ I am not referring [only] to the West Bank, the Gaza Strip, and Jerusalem. When I say that the occupation has no future on the land of Palestine, I refer to Palestine from the [Mediterranean] Sea to the [Jordan] River, and from Rosh Hanikra to Rafah.”[8] “These principles are absolute and cannot be disputed: Palestine - all of Palestine - is from the sea to the river. We won't relinquish one inch of the land of Palestine. The involvement of Hamas at any stage with the interim objective of liberation of [only] Gaza, the West Bank, or Jerusalem, does not replace its strategic view concerning Palestine and the land of Palestine."[9]

Netanyahu: “If [the Palestinians] truly want peace, and educate their children for peace and stop incitement, we for our part will make every effort, allow them freedom of movement and accessibility, making their lives easier and this will help bring peace.”[10]

Haniyeh: “This is a nation of martyrdom and martyrdom-seeking, a nation of jihad for the sake of Allah.”[11]

Netanyahu: “[Israel shared the] joy of the American people [for eliminating Osama bin Laden]. [It was a] resounding victory for justice, freedom, and the values shared by all democratic countries fighting shoulder to shoulder against terror."[12]

Haniyeh: “[W]e, of course, condemn the assassination or killing of a Muslim mujahid and an Arab. We pray for Allah to cover [bin Laden] with His mercy, next to the prophets, the righteous, and the martyrs.”[13]

Netanyahu: “I extend my hand -- the hand of Israel -- in peace. I hope that you will grasp that hand. We are both the sons of Abraham. My people call him Avraham. Your people call him Ibrahim. We share the same patriarch. We dwell in the same land. Our destinies are intertwined. Let us realize the vision of Isaiah –‘The people who walk in darkness will see a great light.’ Let that light be the light of peace.” [14]

Haniyeh: “[D]eath for the sake of Allah is our most supreme desire.”[15]